He IS an American Hero, but...

Dwight D. Eisenhower is my hero. I use that word with all due consideration of the weight of its meaning. I consciously try to emulate him in my professional life, keep a photo of him (standing with my Grandfather. How cool is THAT!?) on the wall in my office, and read anything about him that I can get into my two hands. So, when I saw Michael Korda's new book Ike: An American Hero on sale at Barnes and Noble earlier this week I grabbed it no questions asked. Unfortunately, I'm starting to think I should have asked a question or two.

The footnotes make reference to several other published biographies about Eisenhower, with few references to available documents or other primary sources. This may seem like a small thing, but when I read a biography I'm looking for the author's analysis of the historical record, not a rehash of the work of other researchers. More distressing, however, is the apparent fact that Korda didn't thoroughly read the secondary works he cites as sources. I've noticed two errors in his telling of the facts of Ike's career so far in my reading. In Korda's defense, both of these errors are perpetuated by other biographers as well, but that defense only goes so far. Korda repeatedly cites Carlo D'Este's superior book Eisenhower: A Soldier's Life as a source, and D'Este not only avoids the errors repeated by Korda, he devotes considerable space in his endnotes to debunking them, discussing their origins and listing his sources. Korda's lapse makes me wonder what other oversights are in his book. I admire his effort (I haven't written a book), but find the finished product lacking.

I'll finish the book though. It's about Ike!